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Palestine, Texas
Palestine is a city in and the county seat of Anderson County, Texas. The population of the city is 18,712. Demographics As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the racial composition of the city is: 50.47% White (9,444) 24.53% Black or African American (4,590) 22.37% Hispanic or Latino (4,185) 2.63% Other (493) 16.8% (3,143) of Palestine residents live below the poverty line. Theft rate statistics Palestine has average rates of Pokemon theft and murder. The city reported 23 Pokemon thefts in 2018, and averages 1.67 murders a year. Pokemon See the Anderson County page for more info. Fun facts * The International Railroad and the Houston and Great Northern Railroad met in Palestine in 1872 and merged in 1873 to become the International and Great Northern Railroad (IGN). The IGN later became part of the Missouri Pacific Railroad, then ultimately Union Pacific Railroad. In 1875, IGN President H.M. Hoxie moved to Palestine and built the first Victorian mansion there. Successful merchant owners and railroad executives built other elaborate homes along South Sycamore Street. The IGN built a major depot in 1892 and a modern passenger coach shop in 1902, making Palestine an important locomotive and coach location. These shops remained in operation until 1954. At that time, the present facility was built exclusively for freight-car repair. Today, the Palestine Car Shop is one of only two car shops on the Union Pacific Railroad that perform major modifications and repairs to freight cars. The Palestine UP workforce has more than 100 employees. * After the Rusk Penitentiary was completed near the city of Rusk, convict labor was used to build the railroad. It originally transported raw materials to the iron smelter located at the Rusk Penitentiary. In 1906, the line reached Maydelle, and by 1909, the line was completed when it reached Palestine. Regularly scheduled train service ceased in 1921. The line was leased to various railroad companies until 1969, when they abandoned it during national restructuring. The Texas Legislature adapted the railroad as a state park in 1972, to be devoted to operating trains that showed some of the state's railroad history. The Texas State Railroad is a state park that allows visitors to ride trains pulled by diesel and steam locomotives between the park's Victorian-style depots and through the forests of East Texas. This short railroad line dates to 1883. * Much of the debris from the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, in which seven astronauts were killed, landed in Palestine and other East Texas towns. Palestine's NASA Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility (renamed after the shuttle crash), has flown 1,700 high-altitude balloons for universities and research agencies. * On November 15, 2015, a mass shooting took place at a campsite several miles northwest of Palestine, where six people were killed by an intoxicated neighbor upset about losing his family's land. The shooter was charged with capital murder. He was convicted and sentenced to death by a Brazos County jury on November 15, 2017. * The largest employer is the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, which employs more than 3,900. Another 1,600 work at two Walmart distribution centers. Other significant employers include a thriving medical and healthcare sector that tends to the large population of retirees. * Wired internet for the city is primarily provided by SuddenLink and CenturyLink, with Windstream serving rural areas formerly operated by Valor Telecom. In the 2000s, Comcast and AT&T provided DSL service before withdrawing from the local market. * Trinity Valley Community College operates TVCC-Palestine just north of the city limits at the intersection of US 287 and State Highway 19. In addition to offering academic transfer courses, the Palestine campus offers vocational-technical programs in vocational nursing, cosmetology, mid-management, computer science, criminal justice, business and office technology, fire science, legal assistant, emergency medical technician, and paramedic programs, and also trains correctional officers for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Continuing education and adult education courses are also offered. * The Texas State Railroad Society Museum, located in the downtown Carnegie Library, displays model trains, local history and artifacts, and train memorabilia. * The Texas Theatre, a historic structure designed originally designed as a movie palace that opened in 1930, is a prime example of Spanish Colonial architecture, and provides a home for live community theater today. * Palestine has a good bit of amenities to offer. It has a few chain restaurants, dollar stores, a municipal airport, Walmart, Nintendo World, Bealls, Kroger, a bit of hotels/motels, plenty of fast food, some local restaurants and businesses, a contest hall and showcase theater, Solstice Apparel, a few RV parks, three sports complexes, plenty of public battle fields, Davey Dogwood Park, some auto parts places and car dealerships, Red Rock Ranch & Campgrounds, electric showers, Lowe's, Hobby Lobby, a cinema, a few shopping center, East Texas Electric Fan Club, a performing arts center, a Union pacific rail yard, Museum for East Texas Culture, Brookshire's, Office Depot, and a few other things. Category:Texas Cities